Cry Pretty marks Underwood's first studio album under a new deal she signed with Capitol Records Nashville in 2017. She released the title song as the album's first single on April 11, and "Cry Pretty" is the most-added song at country radio this week. In addition, the song has already reached No. 1 on the iTunes Top Songs charts in 12 countries and garnered more than 1.3 million streams in the U.S., based on just two days of reporting.

Underwood co-wrote "Cry Pretty" with Hillary Lindsey, Lori McKenna, and Liz Rose, who are collectively known as the Love Junkies, and she co-produced the album with writer and producer David Garcia.

“At this point in my career, I feel stronger and more creative than ever. I think you can hear that in this new album," she says in a press release. "It’s emotional, it’s soulful, it’s real, and we also have some fun on there too. I hope everyone loves it as much as I have loved making it.”